Beer Wine & Spirits

There's a boozy paradise brewing (or being uncorked or stirred up, depending on your preference) off the beaten path in West Oakland. Freshly settled between the Campovida wine tasting room and the Linden Street Brewery is the focus of this monthÕs column: The Dock at Linden Street, the latest restaurant venture by chef/owner James Syhabout (Commis, Hawker Fare, and Box and Bells), in partnership with Linden StreetÕs Adam Lamoreaux.

Oakland’s celebrated Camino is named for the fire over which its food is cooked—“camino” means “fireplace” in Italian—but it may as well be named for the discernible route each ingredient takes to your table. And there are other, more circuitous roads being mapped at the wide-open, woody Grand Avenue restaurant. “One of the things that makes this place unique,” says bartender Martha Chong, “is the relationship between the kitchen and the bar and the pastry department, all sharing ingredients.”

Oakland’s celebrated Camino is named for the fire over which its food is cooked—“camino” means “fireplace” in Italian—but it may as well be named for the discernible route each ingredient takes to your table. And there are other, more circuitous roads being mapped at the wide-open, woody Grand Avenue restaurant. “One of the things that makes this place unique,” says bartender Martha Chong, “is the relationship between the kitchen and the bar and the pastry department, all sharing ingredients.”

Weddings are supposed to be a celebration. And yet, observes bartender Jessica Moncada, “The most celebratory aspect is often overlooked.” Moncada was surprised to discover that with the high-end, eco-friendly weddings she assists in planning, the bar was often an afterthought. So she and Zoe Carrasco—who met when they were the first female bartenders to be hired at Flora—started Doble Bar to provide special events of any size with customizable, highly personal cocktail experiences.

Weddings are supposed to be a celebration. And yet, observes bartender Jessica Moncada, “The most celebratory aspect is often overlooked.” Moncada was surprised to discover that with the high-end, eco-friendly weddings she assists in planning, the bar was often an afterthought. So she and Zoe Carrasco—who met when they were the first female bartenders to be hired at Flora—started Doble Bar to provide special events of any size with customizable, highly personal cocktail experiences.

Zack Turner’s bar, the Legionnaire, on Telegraph between Grand Avenue and 23rd Street, is truly a brick-and-mortar extension of himself. It’s named in part for his long-running hip-hop crew, Foreign Legion, but also for the historically inclusive modus operandi of that French military service. “They come from all over; they don’t turn anyone away,” says Turner.